Hypershade window is empty in Maya

Autodesk Support

Oct 8, 2023

Products and versions covered

Issue:

In Maya, the Hypershade window opens blank - only the gray background is displayed.

Causes:

In legacy versions of Maya only, if a scene is saved with the Hypershade window minimized, this issue occurs.

In more current versions of Maya, there are multiple causes:

  • Corrupted Maya Preferences.
  • Error in the Hypershade window.
  • Duplicate instances of the Hypershade open in the background.
  • Unmet system requirements for Maya.

Solution:

To address the causes, use the following strategies:

Clear out corrupted preferences

Clear out Hypershade Error

  • To clear out a simple Hypershade Error, close and reopen the Hypershade window.

Closeout duplicate instances of the Hypershade

To close out background instances of the Hypershade, run the following MEL command see if there are windows open, and then close the background instances:

  1. Copy and paste the following script into the MEL command line at the bottom of Maya's UI. The results indicate that there is a Hypershade window open:
lsUI -type "window";
 

User-added image

To view a larger one, right-click the image on the image and select "Open in new tab"
 

  1. If the results return values such as "hypershadePanel1Window" (also can be seen in the Script Editor - Step 3 and 4) there is a Hypershade window open.
  2. Use the values from the MEL results with the following script to clear out the open Hypershade windows:​
deleteUI hyperShadePanel1Window;

Clean Uninstall/Reinstall Maya

Note. The below Clean Uninstall steps will remove all Autodesk software from your machine and any residual files from any previous installations, Windows registry keys, and license information. Use this procedure only if you need to remove ALL Autodesk software from your system. To uninstall single products, use the Uninstall button in "Programs and Features" in "Control Panel".
 

  1. Search "Uninstall Tool" on the Windows Start button.
  2. Open it and select all the Autodesk software to remove them.
Note. The Uninstall Tool is only available for Autodesk software that are not using the new Installation Experience. If the tool is not available on your system, skip to Step 3. 
  1. Click Start > type appwiz.cpl > press ENTER. The Control Panel opens. Uninstall all Autodesk software.
  2. Run Microsoft Program Install and Uninstall Troubleshooter to check and remove any residual Autodesk software on the system.
  3. Click Start > type %temp% > press ENTER. The Temp folder opens. Remove all folders and files, skip any in use.
  4. Remove the 3 files starting with adsk in C:\ProgramData\FLEXnet (Note. One of the 3 files is hidden).
  5. Remove the folders below:
    • C:\Program Files\Autodesk
    • C:\Program Files\Common Files\Autodesk Shared
    • C:\Program Files (x86)\Autodesk
    • C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Autodesk Shared
    • C:\ProgramData\Autodesk (Note: This folder might be hidden)
    • %localappdata%\Autodesk (Note: This folder might be hidden)
    • %appdata%\Autodesk (Note: This folder might be hidden)
  6. Open Windows Registry Editor (REGEDIT) and remove the following:
    • Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Autodesk
    • Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Autodesk
    • Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\SOFTWARE\Autodesk
Warning:
Use the Microsoft® Registry Editor only at your own risk and only after backing up the registry as well as the  system.dat and  user.dat files as outlined for your operating system in the Microsoft Knowledge Base and in the related solution,  Back up system registry. Additional information about the registry is also contained in the Help topics in the Microsoft Registry Editor.
 

The machine does not meet the System Requirements for Maya

Use the following links to confirm that the computer meets the requirements for Maya to run consistently:

Note: If the graphics card is not on the certified hardware list, consider changing the UI Rendering engine as described in this article: General Troubleshooting Steps for Maya

 

Products:

Maya; Maya Entertainment Creation Suite; Maya LT;

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